After being suspended for the entire 2015 NFL season for violating the league’s substance abuse policy, Miami Dolphins Dion Jordan will apply for reinstatement to the NFL this week. Whether or not that happens is up to NFL commissioner Roger Goodell after receiving a recommendation from doctors who are chosen in a joint effort by the league and its player union who will interview Jordan.

Jordan will also be required to sign medical release forms to permit thorough review of all aspects of his individual situation and adherence to his treatment plan. He’s also subject to up to 10 random drug and alcohol tests per month, the results of which will also be part of Goodell’s reinstatement decision.

Picked by the Dolphins as the third overall choice in the 2013 NFL Draft, he was expected to be the next Jason Taylor, causing the team to trade up in order to draft him. But a shoulder injury during his rookie season was followed by offseason shoulder surgery, and Jordan’s potential was never realized during his first two seasons.

Two failed drug tests in the 2014 offseason garnered him a six-game suspension, then just before December 2015 another failed drug test activated the league’s third-strike, one-year suspension. At that point Jordan had only one start and three sacks in 26 career games. His contract was fully guaranteed at signed but was voided with his first suspension, so it now extends through 2017 with an option for the 2018 year. But it’s not guaranteed that the team will want him back – Dolphins GM Chris Grier is saying he’ll take a “wait and see approach.”

According to Tom Pelissero of USA TODAY Sports, “The coaches and front office that drafted Jordan are gone, leaving a new regime to decide what to do with him before the fifth day of training camp, when a nearly $1.7 million roster bonus is due.”

When Pelissero asked Jordan about his chance at a comeback, he said that “I’m not about to waste it. I can’t waste it. And I (expletive) love doing it. … I just turned 26 years old, so life starts to hit you in the face. Who are you outside of those shoulder pads and helmet? And it’s weird, but I feel like it’s a blessing for me at this point in time to think about it, instead of waiting ‘til they really tell me I can’t play football no more.”

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